Iowa caucuses move to Saturday in '10, likely '12; Good seats available

Anyone who's anyone who likes endless talking will want to mark their January 2010 calendars now: And book a ticket on the train.

The Iowa caucuses, those clumsy, endless exercises in evening democracy while the farmfields sleep every other January, have been moved. They will no longer be on a weekday evening with everyone having to get up early in a few hours for work in offices, factories or livestock barns.

Now, both party's caucuses will be on a Saturday --1 p.m. Central time Jan. 23. So the Hawkeyes football season will be over. Might cut into a basketball or hockey game, but Iowa isn't Indiana or Minnesota.

The scheduling switcheroo is a bipartisan experiment in buzz generation on what are normally off-year snoozefests, with the thinking being the real caucuses in January of 2012 will also be on the weekend if things turn out successfully.

Both years' attention is likely to focus more on Republicans, who will have to come up with a challenger for incumbent Democrat Gov. Chet Culver next year. And in 2012 they'll have to do the same thing for the GOP presidential ticket, since everyone assumes aging Joe Biden will bump what's-his-name out of the way for top spot on the Democrat ticket.

Just kidding. What's-his-name will be doing the bumping.

-- Andrew Malcolm

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Remembering pioneering Latina lawmaker Olga Mendez

Long before there was Sonia Sotomayor, there was Olga Mendez, another accomplished woman of Puerto Rican descent who made her mark in New York. If you didn’t know who Mendez was, let us introduce you now.

Mendez wasn’t a judge, but she was a pioneering politician whose career, in the largest sense, paved the way for Latinos, both men and women, to advance in New York and beyond. In 1978 she became the first Puerto Rican woman elected to the New York Senate. She represented East Harlem and the South Bronx for more than 25 years. (Sotomayor, incidentally, grew up in the Bronx, while Mendez, like Sotomayor's parents, was from Puerto Rico.)

Mendez, who was born in the town of Mayaguez, died this week at the age of 84.

People outside the circles of Empire State politics or Latino civil rights groups might not have heard of her. But her influence in New York was widely felt and after news of her death, testimonials began pouring in.

New York Mayor Michael Bloomberg said in a statement, "When I first entered public service eight years ago, Olga sat me down and impressed upon me -- in her inimitable way -- the importance of reaching across partisan lines to do what's right for your constituents." 

Obama, with heavily armed personal drivers, hails more cash for 'cash for clunkers'

The president, who no longer does much personal driving in his Ford, is not only pleased that a billion dollars for the "Cash for Clunkers" program has already driven out the door, but he's delighted more money is being loaded even as he speaks.

Additional belching Brinks trucks are part way on their way with federal cash thanks to quick action over at the House of Representatives, where Speaker Nancy Pelosi has her own driver always on standby. But, hey, whoever said in Washington they should do what they say others should do?

The House approved another $2 billion today. Now, it's the Senate's turn.

The president just released a Friday afternoon statement. Here it is:

I want to thank leaders in the House of Representatives for working quickly and in a bipartisan way to pass legislation that will use Recovery Act funds to keep “Cash for Clunkers” going. 

This program has been an overwhelming success, allowing consumers to trade in their less fuel efficient cars for a credit to buy more fuel efficient new models. It has given consumers a much needed break, provided the American auto industry an important boost, and is achieving environmental benefits well beyond what was originally anticipated. 

The program has proven to be a successful part of our economic recovery and will help lessen our dangerous dependence on foreign oil, while reducing greenhouse gas emissions and improving the quality of the air we breathe. I urge the Senate to act with the American consumers in mind to pass this important legislation.

The first billion bucks flew out the federal exhaust pipe so quickly in part due to pent-up demand; people driving junksters knew it was coming, so held off any new-car purchases they were considering in order to benefit from the federal largesse. The American way.

Experts estimate some 100,000 would-be buyers were waiting.

While the replacement of one older car is theoretically better for the environment -- despite those buses and garbage trucks freely emitting clouds of blue-grey fumes all over the roads that authorities can't seem to spot. And it's all certainly swell for government summertime publicity, other car experts say the program is a drop in the bucket. Both for the environment and for boosting the troubled automobile industry production.

Car sales tend to spike in late-summer anyway as savvy citizens pick off end-of-model year sales. So August will be a bit better than usual for car salesrooms.

The 200,000-250,000 clunker deals the initial funds were set to finance are like, only a partial day's traffic on the Santa Monica Freeway.

And, guaranteed, those missing cars won't be the ones that would have been in front of you there.

-- Andrew Malcolm

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Photo: Junkcarswanted.com

NBC's 'Meet the Press' clings to ratings lead but ABC, CBS close fast

The Sunday morning talk show race is neck and neck, but "Meet the Press" continues to cling weakly to the top spot.

Last Sunday, NBC's flagship political program had 2.96 million viewers, according to Nielsen Media Research.

"This Week with George Stephanopoulos" on ABC followed closely with 2.64 million, and "Face the Nation with Bob Schieffer" on CBS had 2.47 million.

Oh, and Fox apparently has a show, too. "Fox News Sunday" with Chris Wallace didn't break a million.

The closeness of these shows' ratings is surprising considering the divides between high-profile guests. Stephanopoulos chatted with a couple of congressmen and left-wing blogger Arianna Huffington, and Schieffer had a White House advisor.

You gonna be late for church for that?

Meanwhile, David Gregory interviewed the secretary of State, who worked so closely with Stephanopoulos in the Clinton White House. C'mon, NBC. You have Hillary Clinton, a household name, and can only scrap together a 300,000-viewer lead?

It has been almost three months since we noted that NBC's once-unstoppable, now-Tim-Russert-less "Meet the Press" was falling from viewing grace.

Things were markedly different more than a year ago when Russert was hosting the show. Now, we're not saying Stephanopoulos hasn't recently stepped up his elfish charm, but forgive us if NBC's current hard-working host isn't keeping us as engaged.

Still, there's something to be said about Gregory's show keeping that first-place lead week after week -- as long as, by the way, he's not getting bumped off the air for apolitical tennis matches. (BTW, as regulars know, we post the show guest lineups every Saturday at noon Pacific time.)

Which one do you watch -- and why?

-- Mark Milian

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Photo credit: William B. Plowman / Meet the Press

When the Barack Obama man stops by selling healthcare reform

A not-so-hypothetical scenario these days:

(Doorbell) "Hello. You don't have a vicious dog, do you? I'm selling healthcare reform on your street and I want to tell you a little about it."

"Well, we already have healthcare insurance at work and we're really quite happy with it."

"Ah, yes, but you might not have it for long because costs are spiraling out of control and..."

"You know what? When did costs ever go down? I paid 27.9 cents a gallon for gas to the prom and $2,400 for a full year of private college."

"Yes, but 47 million Americans don't have health insurance and..."

"Well, I'm sorry for them. Truly. But right now our family is more worried about the economy and keeping our own paychecks. How's that job jolt stimulus thing coming along that was so urgent last winter? Because we haven't seen..."

"That's another issue completely. This summer I'm selling healthcare reform. We don't have all the particulars from Nancy Pelosi and Max Baucus yet, but I can guarantee you the reforms won't add another dime to the federal deficit."

"Yeah, right, and the Cubs are gonna win the World Series."

"They are? Even with Reed Johnson out for a month?"

"No, don't worry. I was wondering how you spend billions more that you don't....

Beer Summit twist -- Sam Adams joins Obama, Prof. Gates and Sgt. Crowley

 

OK, it’s not as dramatic as a hanging chad, or the long-stalled Al Franken-Norm Coleman race for the Senate, but The Ticket’s exploration of beer preferences has hit a snag. Earlier today, in honor of the Beer Summit at the White House, we asked readers to cast their vote — did they prefer Bud Light, Red Stripe or Blue Moon?

But it seems that, as with everything connected to the Harvard Professor Incident, things got complicated.

Our admittedly unscientific poll was in honor of the meeting of President Obama, Harvard professor Henry Louis Gates Jr. and Sgt. James Crowley of the police department in Cambridge, Mass. The professor and....

What kind of beer would you drink with President Obama?

As most folks know by now, the White House Beer Summit will take place this afternoon.

At President Obama’s invitation, the two protagonists in the case of the arrested Harvard professor will join the president for a beer and chat. Those two would be professor Henry Louis Gates Jr. and Cambridge Police Sgt. James Crowley.

The beers to be served will be Bud Light, Blue Moon and Red Stripe, which prompts a question for you, the reader. If you were to raise a glass with the president, which beer would you choose? Click here to answer our informal, completely unscientific poll on that very question.

Several hundred readers have already cast their votes and, so far, Blue Moon is in the lead. Dozens of readers, meanwhile, have been commenting on the whole affair. Here’s a sampling, with readers’ sometimes amusing sign-ons:

I can’t imagine a better way to resolve this dispute and get to know each other as fellow human beings deserving of kindness and respect. -- Mike S

The president was stupid! Wasting tax payers money on a trivial issue. I wonder what off the cuff decisions he’s made without knowing ALL the facts regarding the nations security. This man is our leader? Scary! — LA citizen

One of the many reasons I love our Prez. And congratulations to the antagonists in this over blown news item for demonstrating that open dialogue can overcome prejudices, on both sides. — sloreader

Bud Light is Obama’s favorite? I’ve lost all respect for the man. And a cop’s favorite beer is Blue Moon? At least it’s made by Coors, but it ain’t no cop’s beer. Red Stripe is, I suppose, semi-trendy. I imagine Gates drinks it since it’s from Jamaica. Castle from South Africa or 2M from Mozambique or Singha from Thailand would be more exotic. — Steve

What a complete joke and waste of tax payers money and time. — rahm emanuel

(Call us skeptical journalists, but something tells us this writer is not Rahm Emanuel the White House chief of staff.) 

So let us know what you think, and don’t forget to vote. (Visit latimes.com later today for a report on the Beer Summit.).

— Steve Padilla

Photo credit: Paul J. Richards/AFP/Getty Images

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Debts paid, Hillary Clinton builds $3+ million campaign fund for ...?

With all of the immense numbers coming out of Washington these days, former senator, ex-presidential candidate Hillary Clinton's campaign debt is chump change. Make that, "was."

Here's the news: There is no more Hillary Clinton campaign debt.

In fact, there's a campaign fund surplus.

And, in fact, while the current secretary of State officially left politics on being sworn into the Obama administration's top diplomatic post and says future political office "is not anything that is at all on my radar screen," she's still got eight campaign workers on staff. She's also said, "I'm out of politics."

 Hmmm. Note the present tense in that statement.

Of course, she's out of politics now. Also of course, who knows what the situation will be in 2012? Who'd have guessed three years ago she'd be showing her management skills by running the huge Department of State? For a president named Barack Obama?

Or what about 2016? She'd be 69 then. Her good friend, John McCain, wasn't too old to run at 72. Too old to win, but not too old to run. 

As the N.Y. Daily News reports, Clinton's $22 million in campaign debts (a good chunk of it owed to herself), has somehow now turned into some $3+ million in cash on hand and still growing, some in her old Senate fund and some in her defunct presidential campaign warchest.

Obama appealed to his supporters to help her pay off the millions she spent unsuccessfully running him down in the spring of 2008 before giving up her $250 million effort that June. Clinton appealed for money. Also hubby Bill appealed. Chelsea. All kinds of folks and contests. It worked.

fact, it's still working; her campaign site is still accepting donations, presumably from those Democratic voters who helped make 18 million cracks in the ultimate glass ceiling. She didn't get to pay herself back. But Clinton doesn't owe fired consultant Mark Penn any more millions.

The old campaign, which spent $100,000 on staff last quarter, says it's winding down and will soon drop from eight staffers down to five. Clinton's former New York senatorial colleague, Chuck Schumer, has to run a campaign next year. He's only got three fulltimers.

One other thing: There's probably no connection. So many things have changed. But as The Ticket reported here 54 weeks ago, business friends of Hillary Rodham Clinton have purchased the web domain name HRC2012.

Hmmm.

-- Andrew Malcolm

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Photo: Mario Tama / Getty Images (Clinton and Obama show unity in Unity, N.H., June 2008).

Did Skip Gates comment hurt Obama's popularity? Check out these numbers

President Obama's job approval rating is down. The latest Gallup poll shows a drop of three points on the week, to 56%, the largest week-to-week slide in his young presidency and a striking fall from his high of 66% in May.

And the question is, why?

Was it the president's continuing push for healthcare reform? The White House, fearing that it's losing the message war on the issue, has now renamed it "health insurance reform" in hopes the new label will prove more popular.

Or was it his comment that the Cambridge police "acted stupidly" in arresting his friend, Harvard black studies professor Henry Louis Gates Jr.? The comment hurt Obama's reputation as a post-racial figure in American politics and prompted the president to reach out to Sgt. James Crowley and invite him and Gates to visit the White House for a beer Thursday night.

According to Gallup's Lydia Saad, the dropoff started before the president's Gates comment, when he was pitching healthcare reform, and continued afterward. So, hard to measure there.

As for an ethnic breakdown, Obama lost no points with African Americans this past week, while losing four points with whites.

Obama's slide was more marked among Latinos, where his approval fell seven points -- even with the Senate's likely confirmation of Obama nominee Judge Sonia Sotomayor as the first Latina to sit on the Supreme Court.

Gallup is not alone in finding a slide in Obama's popularity. The Rasmussen Report seen in the graphic above makes the same point.

And a CBS News poll released July 13, well before the Gates controversy, measured the president's approval rating at 57%. Half of Americans told CBS they think the recession will last an additional two years or more, 52% think Obama is trying to "accomplish too much," and 57% think the country is on the "wrong track."

What do you think?

-- Johanna Neuman

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Maxine Waters targets Blue Dog Dems as tempers roil over healthcare

California Democrat Maxine Waters has never been known as the shy, quiet type.

Over the years, the congresswoman has charged the CIA with importing crack cocaine into South-Central Los Angeles, assailed independent counsel Kenneth Starr for ‘‘raw, unmasked, unbridled hatred and meanness that drives this impeachment coup d'etat'' against then-President Clinton, and co-sponsored a resolution to impeach then-Vice President Cheney for lying to Congress about the Iraq War.

So it will come as no surprise to those who appreciate Waters' firebrand personality that she is now targeting those who would stand in the way of President Obama's healthcare reform. Blasting the seven fiscally conservative Blue Dog Democrats who are stalling the reform in the House Energy and Commerce Committee, Waters charged the politically moderate group with hypocrisy in protesting the bill's $1 billion price tag but lobbying for increased Medicare reimbursements for rural physicians.

"On the one hand they don’t want to spend money, but on the other hand they want to spend money when it benefits them or their district,” she said on MSNBC.

Asked if she would recruit more liberal candidates to run against the Blue Dogs, Waters said, “That’s normally not done.” But she added: “There may be people out there listening and observing all of this who may get motivated based on what they’re seeing and throw their hat into the ring.”

She also took aim at White House Chief of Staff Rahm Emanuel, who chaired the Congressional Campaign Committee, for recruiting conservative candidates to run in swing districts. Though the election of Blue Dogs bolstered the Democrats' majority in the House, Waters faulted Emanuel, then a congressman from Illinois, for telling the centrists they could vote their conscience.

Now, she said, the White House is having trouble getting its healthcare plan passed in Congress and "the chickens are coming home to roost."

Waters is not the only member of the Congressional Black Caucus angry about the Blue Dogs. The caucus chairwoman, California's Barbara Lee, said last week,  “We don’t think any one group in our [Democratic] caucus ought to be able to derail this.”

-- Johanna Neuman

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